You can see on your map how far you have come from the glaciers and sailed along the Aare as you leave Solothurn and head north and east towards the city of Olten. Honestly, it’s a pretty amazing journey!
There have been some really cool places you have seen following the Aare. Although we are getting towards where our mother river slides into the Rhein we aren’t quite there yet.
Olten is next up on our tour of the River Aare … and certainly another pretty cool place to stop and take a look at.
The city originated around a bridge built over the Aare in the Middle Ages. That wooden bridge is still really neat to walk across.
Olten originally struggled to gain footing as a town – but since then it has become a major hub for the Swiss railroad.
Now, many routes in the railway heading towards Zurich, Basel, Bern or Lucerne have connections here … making it quite a busy place. (All of these cities sit only a half an hour away from Olten.)
Since it is so close to so many places it has become a popular place to hold meetings and conferences. Well – seriously, it’s easy to get to and everything is right there. It is a great place to get together.
Years ago Pete Metzelaars and I had some really good pizza down town. Well, what place here in Switzerland has bad Italian food? Really like most places in the states – well you can find a good hamburger right??
Actually for an American – you will find the hamburgers here are not very good. They stack all kinds of junk on top of the patty (which they call salad) and it turns the entire thing into a 15.7 kilo mass of meat, mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, lettuce and whatever else they can jam on there! Sorry – you better know what you are getting into when you order a hamburger in Switzerland!
Almost 20,000 people live here in Olten… and since it is the crossroads north and south … east and west for the railways it’s always bustling. People coming and going.
One of my favorite places to be is the Bahnhof (train station) in any city. People are rushing here and there and arguing with one another to figure out where to go … pushing luggage and looking at the overhead train schedules.
It’s organized chaos if you know where to go. Honestly, I understand the confusion if you are not from here (which I am now) and trying to figure out how to get to your destination. But really, it’s a fantastic train system the Swiss have developed.
Although I have screwed up many times (well that is why I call some trips (mis)adventures!) You will be hard pressed to get lost forever in Switzerland. – I won’t say the same for some other countries I have traveled through.
The old town of Olten sits right on the Aare and has all kinds of cafes, restaurants and places to just sit down and enjoy the afternoon. Hell, you might even be able to find somewhere in the plaza to have a beer or ten.
Sitting down and looking out over the river is a nice way to spend an afternoon in Switzerland. Trust me … I know how to dawdle (look that word up) away a nice sunny afternoon in Switzerland.
